EA Names Internal Employee Andrew Wilson New CEO - The UpStream

EA Names Internal Employee Andrew Wilson New CEO

posted Wednesday Sep 18, 2013 by Nicholas DiMeo

EA Names Internal Employee Andrew Wilson New CEO

Six months ago, EA's CEO, John Riccietiello, stepped down from his position as leader of the gaming company, putting former exec Larry Probst back at the helm while Electronic Arts hunted down a new chief. Well, EA has now found the right person for the job, Andrew Wilson.

In a blog post on EA's site, Probst speaks on not only the search process, but also on what Wilson brings to the team.

The rigorous search conducted by our Board included several talented executives from both outside the company and from within EA. Andrew's appointment is a clear demonstration of the deep bench of management talent at EA, and reflects our fundamental belief that EA is on track to become the global leader in interactive games and services.

For Wilson, he signed on to the company back in 2000 and was heavily involved in the South Korea studio for EA. He first started with the company as Executive Producer of FIFA and most recently was the Executive Vice President of EA SPORTS and Origin. Probst said that during Wilson's time as EVP of EA SPORTS, he discovered that the new CEO showed "an exceptional ability to identify and develop talented people and teams."

Wilson also posted on the EA blog. He spoke on his goals moving forward with the company, outlining exactly what he's going to do.

I envision EA as the World's Greatest Games Company. This is not about what we are aiming for or what we will become. Rather, it is about an unfaltering commitment to what we will be every day. This is an attitude that must drive our culture as one team.

In the short term, our mission is crystal clear: We are 100 percent focused on delivering our FY14 business plan.

Looking ahead, my focus will be on three things:

1. Continued transformation for our digital future;

2. Delivering amazing games and services across platforms; and

3. Instilling a culture of execution that will drive profitable growth.

For now, Probst will remain on with the company for an "indefinite period" of time as Executive Chairman, while he helps Wilson transition into his new role as CEO. The new leader of EA also said that in the next few weeks we should see a full detail of his operational plan, which will contain information to turn his three bulleted goals into a reality. For EA's sake, and for the sake of gamers everywhere, let's hope Andrew Wilson will start turning EA into a more human company again, and I'll wish that he steers the gaming studio and publisher away from the bottom-dollar-focused, no-accountability, micro-transaction-ladened world we're currently seeing EA live in.

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